George wilson



' Zlir/e? mi??? PETERS, PHOTO-LITHOGRAFHER. WASHINGTON D C iti-teh faire@anni @frn eEoEcE WILsoNg-o-E NEW LEXINGTON,` onto,-

Leffm Peanut). 76,869, aateanpra 14, 1868.

Ets tttmle infant tt in time tettat @mit mit mating out nt tige stmt,

To ALL WHoM IT MAY ooNoERN;

Beit known that I, GEORGE WILSON, of New Lexington, in the county ofPerry, and State of Ohio, have A'invented a new: and usefulv Improvementin Mode of Treatment yfor FootfRot-and other Diseases in Sheep g and Ido hereby declare the follotving to gbe a full, clear, and exactdescription of the same., reference beinghad to the accompanyingdrawings, in whichf i Figure 1 represents a front vieivof a sheeps foot,with th-e toes spread apart to show the orifice of the hiilex canal."

Figure 2 represents a-section-o'f the sheeps foot through the cleft, toexhibit the position, &c., of the Fbiilex canal."

Figure 3 exhibits the mode of. separating and removing thefsaid canal.

The disease'calledyfootrot has. heen'known to shepherds forages,'hut'has'hitherto been considered mys' terious, and-more or'lessur'nznanage'able. Various causes have been assigned for its origin,andyarious remedies have been proposed, but no dnehithertmsofar asknown-to me, has-discoveredanymethod of treatment which could claim tobestow more Athan temporary' and uncertain relief.

' -Expei-ience has satisfied me -that 'the truecause ofv the dis easehas notV before been discovered, and that therefore all attempts attreatment have been necessarily experimental, and at best. resulting. inonly temporary relief. Y i

-The symptoms of the .disease may be briefly enumerate d. The sheepvbecomes dull'and languid; :the wool loses its elasticity, and becomesmatted tothe sheep in partspressed'upon when lying down; the headdroops, and the sheep is indisposed-to moveoften, shaking the-:AheadVbefore starting to walk, and-when walking shows signs of stiffness inthe limbs, and moreor less lameness or actual limpin'g. Examine thehoof, andit appears hard, jagged,.and rough. The `whole foot is-h'ot,1the' joint is swollen, and the lbiiiex canal,\vhich -in healthsecretes a yelloivish limpid iiuid, is new lled with a gummy, cheesymatter, of. ofensive smell. If no remedial measures are adopted, theiriammation continues, and the foot begins t'o slongh. The sheep, forsome time, cona tinues to, consume its usual amount offfood, but finallyloses flesh rapidly and dies.

I am satised 'that the original s'eat of this disease is inthebiilexcanal. The sheep, in, its wild state, inhabits high, drymountainousdistricts.` It is an auimalofunsnrpassed activity andagility, and ythe funcs tion of the biilex canal, while thesheep is inits wild condition, is. probablyof great importance, but in a domes ticstate the habits o'f the sheep are reversed; it becomes heavy,full"'fed,'aud little disposed to exertion, and vthe gland referred toceases tobe of any importance,jas its functions are not requiredr: Thenaturalconse quence is, a tendency to morbid irritability, and a.predisposition to disease. Hence, when a sheep is put upon damp orwet-pasture, this gland is immediately affected, and disease will sooneror later be sure to follow. The only certain cure or preventiveiseradication of the troublesome organ. The removal of this gland is notdidicult, nor in .a high degree painful. Its attachment to thecontiguous tissuesfis very slight,'and when loosened at its mouth, itmay be nithdrawn with little eifort.

The operation is eifectedia's follows: Insert a curved needle-or.tenaculnmV through the lips-or sides of the mouth of the tube, and,raisingit slightly with one hand, cut through thel skin all around theraised mouthpf the tube with a sharp knife or scalpehand 'then gentlydraw the tube forth, seizing it ivith the thumb and lfinger of the handwhich held the knife. I I

The gland having been removed, as above set frth, the limb should bedressed byfilling the cavity with an ointment compounded of thefollowing materials:

Tar, best quality, one pint,"saturatedtincture Sanguz'narz'aC'anadensz's, one-spint; Hydrastz's Canademz'mione pint; sulphatecopper, pulverized, four ounces: lard,lone half pound. Boil togetherover slow iirefor -a\few min# utes; stir occasionally;v cool.

After removing the bitlei: canal,"as above described, and filling thecavity with .the`mixtnre', keep the sheep in a dry, clean pasture oryard for a fewl days, until the' feet are healed, examining.occasionally to sce that/the'v l opened, discharge aV clear, thicksubstance, resembling,` the white of eggs.

cavity does not become soabbed over or clogged, and repeating theapplieationy'it` necessary. In ten or fifteen days thesheep will beableto` go to its usual pasturage. I

The` biiex canal may be destroyed by cauterizing, or in other ways,butthose methods'are uncertain, and much more liable to give rise toserious inilammations than the surgical operation described above.

,The composition of the ointment or dressing i I I not enter into thematter claimed by me as my invention or discovery in this patent.`

Other diseases, besides that known as foot-rot, have their origin in thebill ex canal, and its extirpationrwill effect their cure. Among theseis one known as dry decay, of which the symptoms are a listless andsickly look; the sheep lags behi'ud'whcn the flock is inl motion thehead and ears droop, andthe sheep stumbles, a: though weak and sore inits limbs; the wool looks harsh and dry; the eyes and nose run-3 andthough theshezp eats well, it loses flesh, and looks old and worn; thefeet and legs are cold, and feel 'like deadesh;v the skin looks pale,and puts on a peculiar, b loodless appearance; tumors appear Thisdiseasemay Alastvfor months, but is almost snre'to result in death if notarrested. An examination of the biilex canal shows clearly that theoriginal seat of the disease is th'e same as foot-rot, and the sametreatment will eiect the cure.-

Another disease of achronic nature, called scours or diarrhoea,sometimes results from adiseased state of the biilex canal. This is alsoan obstinate and fatal disease, and can be most readily cured by removalof `the gland. p v e There are other 'diseases which arise from-the samesource, and which yield permanently to the same treatment, and Wheneverthe bi'ex canal appears to be iuvolved'in any degree, it'sheuld beremoved. All of, these alcctionaarising from thefdiseased condition ofthis canal, appear to be contagious, probably* from the fact thatatevery step someof the standing grass is-drawn between the cleft of thehooil and becomes contaminated, and the matter so removed from one sheepis liable' to be communicated to the neit one whocrosses or follows thepath` of the first. But after extirpation of the gland,vsheep are nomore liable to disease, and do notrequire change of pasture more thanother stock.

What I claim as new, is The'above-deseribed mode of treating diseasedsheep having foot'rot, drydecay, scours,v&c.,z'. e.,

by extirpating the bilex' canal, in the mode and by the process hereindescribed.

GEORGE WILSON.

Witnesses,

JOSEPH VANATTA, R. E. HUSTEN.

given above may be varied, perhaps with benefit, and it docs i about thejaws and head, which, when

